The sporting behemoth that is adidas needs no introduction at all.  I have always assumed that it's a goal of marketing teams to make their brands as recognisable as possible.  If that is the case, then bravo to the folks at adidas.  The iconic 3-stripes are instantly recognised all the world over whether it be on sports clothing, football boots or golf shoes and apparel.

With such visibility, comes high exposure to the world's top athletes.  adidas are represented by some of the world's most talented sporting superstars including non other than Lionel Messi.  From a golfing perspective, the brand adorns 2021 Open Champion Collin Morikawa, Xander Schauffele, Dustin Johnson and Tyrrell Hatton.

The brands non-stop approach aims provide these players with apparel and footwear that is not only fashionable and comfortable but also offers them a performance advantage over the field.  25 years ago, golf may have been a sport where you could wear anything and it wouldn't matter a jot, but no longer.  The research and technology that goes into an adidas golf shoe is second to none and it's for that reason that these great players and multiple Major Champions trust their footwork to adidas.

Something that certainly got tongues wagging was Tyrrell Hatton's decision to wear a hoodie in 2020 BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth.  Hatton played stunning on his way to a four-shot victory, a win that took him into the top 10 of the world rankings for the first time.  During and after the event, he seemed to receive as many column inches about the hoodie as he did for his excellent golf.  Perhaps had he not dominated the field, there would have been less a furore.



“I was a little surprised by the reaction.  I wasn’t the first person to wear a hoodie, but it was great how much attention it got, although it was definitely divided! I enjoyed wearing it – it was great.  There wasn’t too much thought to it.  It’s very easy to swing in and it moves nicely with your body so there’s no restriction there.  On days where it’s a bit cold and you need to layer up, you want to be able to swing freely and I was able to do that in the hoodie. I thought it was cool to wear.”
Tyrrell Hatton

From my point of view, I thought it was great and quite refreshing to see.  Don't get me wrong, I love most of the traditions about the game and enjoy reading about legends like Byron Nelson, Walter Hagen, Sam Snead and my 'dig it out of the ground' favourite, Ben Hogan.  Conversely, I am all for the sport I love being inclusive and opening up to more and more people, particularly youngsters.  Now that I am a parent, if my little girl feels more confortable in her first trip the range with me in a hoodie, then I'd love for her to be able to do that on the course as well.

Judging the comments I read and the emails we received, most people seemed to be saying, "I really like the look of that, but I'm not sure I'd get away with it at my club!"  Perhaps it will be like Tiger's mock neck polo shirt that caused some bother when he debuted it, but soon became second nature.

On thing is for sure, whatever the golfing trends will be in the coming years, and whatever technologies need to be built into our clothing and shoes to help us play better, you can be certain that adidas will be right at the forefront of it.

 

 

 

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